User Guide 4: Placing commissions
When you have received proposals you like, the next step is to commission full, detailed responses.
Commission options
When placing commissions, you have a few options to help you get the best results:
Final fee offered
As the client, you make the final offer on the fee for the detailed response. This may be the same as your original suggested fee, or it may be revised if the business thinker proposed a different fee.
If you capped your fee, the business thinker cannot propose a higher fee. However, some requests receive proposals with higher fees from business thinkers, if the business thinker judges that the request merits more work than you originally anticipated. Note that the business thinker is not guaranteed to accept the commission, if the final fee offered is lower than a higher fee they proposed.
Also, some business thinkers may offer a lower fee, often to compete for a high rating, in which case the final fee will default to the business thinker's proposed lower fee.
Commission notes
Your request may have changed since you first posted it, possibly in response to things you have learned from the proposals. The Commission notes give you the opportunity to revise the nature of the commission.
- You may wish to issue a more focused or more expanded brief.
- You may also want to set parameters for topics that you don't want the Business Thinker to address ("no-go areas")
Also, you may choose to explain the final fee offered, in light of any changes to the commission.
Time limit
You will need to set a new time limit, within which the business thinker must submit their final response.
Once you submit the commisison, and it is accepted by the business thinker, you are contractually obliged to pay for the service once fulfilled. However, the business thinker must both accept the commission, and also submit their final, detailed response within the time limit you set. Until the commission is accepted, you may still revoke it. If the business thinker does not submit their final response by the end of the period, you are not liable to pay the fee. However, you will have the option to extend the time period for any reason.
